


Conspiracy

by lesbianettes



Series: Conspiracy [1]
Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Gaslighting, Kat is from SVU but she's a guest star, M/M, Murder, Murder Mystery, detective!Carlos, homicide detective!Carlos, implied csa, implied physical and emotional abuse, owen is not a good guy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:29:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 13,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24237313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lesbianettes/pseuds/lesbianettes
Summary: After Owen Strand's mutilated corpse is found in his home, his son is the prime suspect. Throughout the investigation, however, it becomes obvious how many people could have done the deed.Updates Sundays, Wednesdays, Fridays
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Series: Conspiracy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1771354
Comments: 22
Kudos: 123





	1. Chapter 1

Carlos parks his car on the street, the driveway already crowded with patrol officers and the coroners. It must be a slow morning, if they’ve already made their way here. They won’t move the body without clearance, which explains why they’re lounging around outside, smoking and chatting. They’re always a little blase about dead bodies, a skill Carlos hasn’t managed to cull quite yet, even though he’s been a homicide detective for almost a year. His captain said eventually, he’d stop having nightmares. Eventually. 

Officer Tamin meets him at the front door, her lips set into a grim line. She’s too young and inexperienced to get here. After they finish clearing the scene, he’ll see if he can get her sent home. 

“Detective Reyes,” she says. “Victim is Captain Owen Strand- the new guy at firehouse 126.” She leads him through the front door and the living area, meticulously clean. It reminds him of those interior design catalogues in the doctor’s office waiting room, or a model home like the ones he spent a month touring. “We already found and bagged the murder weapon. I hope you have a strong stomach, Reyes. This one’s messy.”

Lying on the kitchen floor is what’s left of Captain Strand. Carlos recognizes his face from a news article when the firehouse reopened, but the rest of him is practically unrecognizable. His stomach has been cut open, spilling entrails across the tile. There’s probably fifty stab wounds all over his body. It also seems like he’s been castrated, and that part is missing despite the large pool of blood. This must have been personal. Before Carlos can take a closer look at the body, he spots a young man leaning against the counter, taking a sip of water and staring at the captain.

“Officer?” Carlos prompts.

“TK Strand, victim’s son and one of his firefighters. He’s the one who found the body. Something’s kinda off.”

He nods and dismisses her to approach TK. The man’s face is completely blank, but his eyes are focused sharply on the mess. It could be shock, and yet, there’s no grief on his face. No pain. Just acceptance, like he knew this was coming. He doesn’t react to Carlos in front of him until he clears his throat. Then, bright green eyes snap to his, and TK’s chapped lips curve up in a wry smile.

“You’re here to investigate my dad’s death.”

“Yes. I’m Detective Reyes.” He holds out his hand. TK looks at it, and then Carlos’ face, making no move to shake it. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

TK shakes his head. “Don’t be. He deserved it.”

Carlos looks over to the body again. It’s not just a murder, but a horrific way to die. Judging by the amount of blood, the captain was probably still alive for the majority of his injuries. Definitely for the castration. That alone suggests looking into the romantic interests in his life, but Carlos can easily tell that TK has no lost love for his father. There could be a history of abuse there, and TK finally snapped. It wouldn’t be the first victim to murder their abuser. Carlos wouldn’t even blame him if that was the case.

“Why don’t we go into the other room, and you can tell me what happened?”

“I’m fine right here. Would you like a drink?”

Without waiting for an answer, TK pours a second glass of water from the tap in the fridge door and holds it out like a peace offering. It’s just water. There’s no way he could have done anything to it. Nonetheless, Carlos puts the offered glass on the counter and resigns himself to conducting the interview right next to the body. The body of TK’s father.

“Officer Tamin told me you’re the one who called 911. Tell me how that happened?”

“I needed to get some stuff. Some more of my clothes, because I didn’t have a lot in my duffel bag. I came in with my key, got my things-” he nods toward a suitcase in the entry to the kitchen, “and decided to get some water. I found him like that.”

Carlos jots his answer down in the notepad he carries with him. “You still live with your father?”

“After he forced me to move to Texas and stay in his house? Yeah. But I’ve been crashing with Marjan- one of my crewmates- lately.”

There’s enough anger in his tone to set off alarm bells in Carlos’ mind. Still, he keeps his face neutral and copies down the words. He thanks TK and says they’ll be in touch, keeping in the back of his mind that TK is a suspect. The man clearly has issues with his father. One of the uniformed officers takes him to get checked out by medical and brought to the station for an official statement, so he won’t be able to go anywhere while Carlos finishes up at the scene and stops by Firehouse 126 to inform them of what happened to their captain. 

He crouches next to the body and looks at the captain’s face. It’s completely uninjured. His eyes are still open, his lips slightly parted, his hair neatly gelled. Disregarding the rest of the body, he could be on his way to the store or a date. Once he pulls on his gloves, Carlos cups his face and lifts it to make sure there aren’t injuries on the back of his head. Nothing. This man is visibly muscular, so unless he was drugged, it would have taken someone stronger than TK to subdue him enough to do this kind of damage. Or he had to have help.

“Officer Tamin,” he calls, easing the captain’s head back to the floor. “Have the coroner run a tox screen. And make sure that TK Strand doesn’t leave the station until I’ve talked to him some more.”

“Yes, detective.”

Then he starts looking around the kitchen for the “missing piece.” It can’t have gone far, unless the killer took it with them. He can’t imagine why they would. This isn’t a trophy kill, or a serial who likes to remember. It was personal, unskilled, and impulsive. Sure there was some planning to kill him, but not any as to how it would be executed. 

“Detective Reyes?”

Carlos lifts his head. Officer Tamin’s face has gone grey, the blood rushing away from her ochre skin as she holds something up with a gloved hand. It’s no question what she’s found. He holds out an evidence bag for her to set it in, and asks where she found it. She points to a pair of metal bowls tucked almost under the dining room table. They’re dog bowls, filled with water and kibble, although the kibble is stained and wet with blood. Fuck.

“We know where the dog is?”

“At the station,” Officer Tamin says. She sounds like she’s going to be sick. “He’s the firehouse dog. Sometimes he goes home with Captain Strand, but his son said the dog is at the 126 today.”

“Okay. That’s good.” With a deep breath, Carlos leaves the scene to the crime scene photographers and coroners, dismissing Tamin back to patrol while he prepares to tell the new 126 that the man who brought their family together is gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> technically it's still sunday where I am... sorry I got off track bc I've been working so much! It'll be up on tumblr in the morning, thanks for your patience!

When Carlos arrives at the 126, he finds the sole survivor of the old firehouse, Judd Ryder, polishing the bright red paint of their truck. Each little circle of the waxing cloth is almost angry in its precision, Judd’s knuckles white with the force of it. It’s like he knows what Carlos is here for, even before he asks him to gather the crew together. He names them off, one by one: Strickland, Chavez, Marwani, Blake, Gillian and Rosewater. Three more firefighters, and three paramedics. None of them seem worried or concerned about Carlos’ presence, or the absence of their captain and his son. Just like with TK, there’s something not quite right here.

“I’m sorry to inform you all, but Captain Strand was found dead in his home this morning.”

Chavez whistles lowly, looking away. He seems to be the only one at all affected by the news, his eyes going glassy as he crosses his arms. Everyone else keeps staring at him, as though they don’t consider it to be news. Well, Carlos did think that TK couldn’t have killed him alone. And he knows that firefighter crews get tight-knit. They’re closer than family, some of them. 

“It was a homicide. After the autopsy, he’ll be released for a burial, or- or whatever service he would have wanted. That would fall to his son, TK, but I imagine he’ll need your support with all that. We’ve just started our investigation, but we will find your captain’s killer, and bring them to justice. Once again, I’m sorry for your loss.”

For a moment, they’re all quiet, but there’s nothing to indicate any sort of grief on their faces, just like with TK. Chavez seems to be the only one affected by the news. A single tear rolls down his cheek. Marwani hugs him in against her side, but otherwise, there is nothing. It’s Judd who breaks the silence. 

“I’m glad the bastard is dead,” he says, and walks away.

At that, Carlos is left to question the team. 

He asks them to take a seat, and pulls out his notebook again to ask them about TK, as a start. “He said that he’s staying with someone named Marjan right now?”

“That would be me.” Marwani- or rather, Marjan- says, lifting her hand slightly. “Captain Strand was a lot, so TK and I have been living together for the past few weeks. He couldn’t take it anymore.”

“And what was it he couldn’t take?”

Marjan looks at Chavez and doesn’t respond. After a moment, she guides him away to cry in peace, away from the questioning. That just leaves Strickland and the paramedics, stoic and unaffected, silent and maybe even smug. None of them seem sad to have lost Captain Strand either, or have any interest in the news that he was murdered. Everything about this investigation is just wrong. Captain Strand was well loved by the community. The people in the neighborhood were happy to see someone reclaim the dreary memorial of a firehouse, and they’ve always been glad to interact with him. From what Carlos heard, he’s popped up on a fair number of local news stories. The whole 126 has. They’re brave and maybe a little reckless, protective of each other, and dedicated to their jobs. And yet, this crew that are so close, don’t seem at all bothered by this. Add that to the implications that Captain Strand wasn’t as good a person as he seems, Carlos has found himself a handful of suspects with clear motives. The only difference between this firehouse and TK Strand is that TK had a key to that house.

“I know this is hard, but it would really help the investigation if one of you could explain to me what it was about your captain that was so bad.”

Gillian looks to Blake, as though for permission. When the woman nods, Gillian begins to speak. “Captain Strand had a really weird thing about TK. He was controlling, to say the least. They lived together and worked together, and Cap would dictate everything TK did. What he could eat, where he could go, who he could talk to. When he first rebuilt this house, he would barely let TK talk to the other firefighters.”

“He took an interest in Mateo, too,” Strickland adds. “Chavez, the one who was crying? Not as intense as with TK, but he was… interested in him.”

“By interested, you mean…?”

“It’s hard to explain, but something wasn’t right,” Blake fills in.

Carlos rubs his face. This is a rough one for too many reasons to count. “Did TK ever tell you that his father had abused him?”

“He didn’t have to. But if he talked to anyone about it, it would have been Mateo or Judd. Mateo knew what Owen was really like, and Judd and TK are like brothers.”

“I’ll have to talk to them both. And Marjan, to make sure TK was with her last night,” Carlos says.

And just like that, Blake is smiling at him. It’s the sort of smile that says he’s stupid, the sort that makes him feel like a scolded child all over again despite the fact that she just told him his prime suspect was likely abused by the victim. While Carlos has looked countless killers in the eyes with this same expression, there’s something more unnerving about how calm she seems. They’re all too at ease. Even if they didn’t like Captain Strand, even if they hated him, they still worked with him every single day. 

“Honestly,” Blake says, “there’s no point in looking into this. The world is a lot better off without that son of a bitch in it.”

When Carlos leaves them behind to look for Marjan and Mateo, he gets this sense that any help TK may have had came from this firehouse. They all hated the victim just as much. Still, he heads over to speak to those two, finding them in the kitchen area with mugs of tea while Mateo blows his nose into a tissue. Poor kid, he didn’t deserve to be involved in this. He seems like the only reasonable one around here, and that unfortunately may be because Captain Strand hurt him too. 

“Could we have a moment?” Carlos asks Marjan.

“Mateo, do you want me to leave or stay?”

Immediately Mateo takes her outstretched hand. “Stay.”

Marjan meets Carlos’ eyes almost with a challenge, pulling up a seat beside Mateo and staying close protectively. It would be sweet in any normal situation, but that’s nowhere near what this mess is. None of them are innocent, except for possibly Mateo. The man is so young, still basically fresh from the academy.

“So, Mateo, I wanted to ask you a couple questions. Your um, your coworkers told me that you and Captain Strand were close?”

He nods. Marjan sends Carlos a warning look. 

“Can you tell me a little more about that? How close were you?”

“Cap, um, he helped me get a job. Hired me, and fought for me to be able to have my exam read to me at the academy. I’m dyslexic. He’s the one who figured that out, actually. Cap was the first person to tell me I was smart.” For a moment, it’s too much. Mateo sobs and wipes his eyes, clings to Marjan when she pulls him close against her chest in a motherly fashion. “He was like a dad to me. I- he treated me just like TK, and- and he believed in me.”

“When you say just like TK…”

“Only the good parts,” Mateo corrects quickly. “He wasn’t mean to me.”

Carlos has to tread lightly. “He was mean to TK, though?”

“Sometimes. When TK pissed him off. But Cap never got mad at me. He cared about me a lot, and he made sure that I always felt good.”

His throat feels tight. 

“And how did he do that, Mateo?”

“I- I don’t wanna talk about it!”

Mateo stands up and leaves. But Marjan doesn’t follow him, just watches him leave and begins to tidy up the kitchen. She must know that Carlos has questions for her too, as she hums to herself and waits for him to ask them.

“TK was staying with you, you said. Last night, was he home the whole night?”

“Never left his room,” Marjan confirms. “He doesn’t leave the house on his own. Captain Strand spent his whole life conditioning that into him. This isn’t worth investigating, Detective. It’s best for everyone if you just let it go.”


	3. Chapter 3

Once Carlos gets back to the station, he sees TK in the interrogation room, full of motion. He has his knees to his chest in the little chair, uncomfortably cramped to fit the position, and his jaw works rhythmically as he chews on the string of his hoodie. To be honest, he looks a lot like a little kid, the same way Mateo seemed to become throughout the interview. If Captain Strand was abusing the two of them, it explains why he was castrated, no matter who actually did the deed. And the rage with which he was murdered. 

Officer Tamin gives him a file they’ve put together on TK while he was gone, heavy with the weight of an all-too-familiar story, one that surrounds the history of more DV victims than Carlos can count. As a patrol officer, he took a lot of those reports. As a young child, TK was diagnosed with Oppositional Defiance Disorder. He overdosed for the first time at eleven years old. When his parents split up, his mother wanted custody because Owen Strand had severe PTSD from the towers falling, and she suspected he was abusing TK. TK wanted to stay with his father. They shared custody until TK was old enough to move in with his dad full time. Then there’s a series of stints in rehab and mental health facilities, purposeful overdoses, arrests for public intoxication and buying drugs. It cleans up when he joins the fire academy. After that, almost squeaky clean. Right before the move to Austin, TK overdosed again. It tells the story of a child who has been horrifically abused for his entire life, and never managed to get away from his father’s influence for long. The officers went through his phone, and his only contacts are Owen Strand and the other members of the 126. He doesn’t even have any friends. 

“I’m just saying, I think he’s good for it,” Officer Tamin says. “I’d have killed the guy too, if he treated me like that.”

“That would be mitigating circumstances, though. Can you have someone get a psych consult?”

She leaves to follow his instructions as Carlos goes into the interrogation room, bringing the file with him. TK’s eyes follow him from the door to the chair. They’re still blank, like before, but his body language betrays his anxiety.

“I talked to your crew.”

No response. 

“I heard about what your dad was like. How he treated you. What he did to you.” TK studies the table like it’s the most fascinating thing in the world. “Mr. Strand, if you talk to me, I can help you.”

TK smiles a little. “Please, it’s TK. No one calls me Mr. Strand. And I know you just want me to confess.”

“If you killed your father, yeah, I do.” Carlos wishes TK would look at him, know he’s being sincere. “But if you explain yourself, maybe there’s something I can do to help you get through this. There had to have been a reason, right? Maybe he called you while you were at Marjan’s and said something that triggered you. Or you had a flashback of what he did. If this is because of what he did to you, then-”

“My dad didn’t do anything to me!”

And yet, TK won’t look Carlos in the eyes. He’s too upset and freaked out.

Carlos holds his hands up in a placating gesture. “Do you know why your team thinks he did?” 

It doesn’t seem as though TK has an answer to that. He just stays quiet and draws his limbs closer to himself again. He doesn’t look like he could kill someone in this moment, but nonetheless, he’s been so cold and emotionless since Carlos met him that he wonders if this is an act, or TK breaking back down into whatever he was like when he killed his father. Or helped kill him. The details are all still blurry.

“Let’s try this another way. Does anyone else have a key to your father’s house?”

“No. Just me and him.”

That’s progress. “There was no evidence that anyone broke in, TK. You had a key, you ‘found’ the body, and you said you were happy he was gone. Your crew told me that he was really controlling. Is that true?”

“Always. Just like I’m still the little kid I was when the towers came down.”

“So it all started after 9/11?”

TK switches which hoodie string he has in his mouth, and looks up at Carlos with something desperate on his face. Like he’s asking for someone to understand what he went through, tell him that it’s okay, protect him from his past. It’s heartbreaking, and has no place on the face of someone who gutted and castrated their own father. 

“Mateo had it worse,” he says suddenly.

“Had what worse?”

He acts like he didn’t hear Carlos, focusing on the table like it’s the most interesting thing in the world. Just staring at it. When he tilts his head to the side slightly, it reveals a relatively fresh bruise on the side of his neck. Almost hand shaped. Maybe sustained last night. 

“Did your dad-”

“He wasn’t my dad anymore,” TK says urgently. “He told me I was making it up, that he loved me too much to ever make me unhappy. When I told him to leave Mateo alone, he- he hit me. It was like he hated me.”

Poor TK. Hearing this hurts. Carlos wants nothing more than to hold him and comfort him, but he knows he doesn’t have that liberty, and neither does the suspect in front of him, no matter how tragic the circumstances. He has to remember what brought the two of them to this room. 

“And that made you mad?”

“It didn’t- my dad dragged me down here, made me start over, and- and he didn’t want anything to do with me once I stopped letting him… I was upset, but not like- I wasn’t angry. He’s all I’ve had since I was a kid. My mom didn’t even want me.”

That part sets off warning bells. Carlos opens the file up and returns to the section on the custody battle. “That’s not true. I have the records of your parents’ divorce. Your mother wanted full custody of you because she thought your father was abusing you.”

“That’s not true.”

“I can show you the legal documents.”

TK shakes his head and looks away. It doesn’t match whatever his father told him, has been telling him for the last fifteen years as his continued means of keeping his grown son under his thumb even longer.

“Listen to me, okay?” Carlos says. “If you killed your father, I get it. I don’t blame you. But I need you to tell me the full story of what happened so that I can help you. You don’t deserve to die for this.”

“I do,” TK argues.

No matter what, Carlos cannot get him to say anything else for the rest of the interview, and is forced to give up. They can hold TK for a few more hours, anyways. He leaves him there, asks Officer Tamin to get him water and something to eat, and heads down to forensics to see if they got anything off the murder weapon.

He hasn’t seen it yet, but his blood runs cold when he sees the object sitting neatly in its baggie on a metal tray. It’s a scalpel. The kind of scalpel that one might find in a hospital, or perhaps an ambulance. Anyone at the 126 could have gotten this. Carlos looks away from it at the coroner. 

“So?”

“The cuts were clean. Done with the medical instrument.” She gestures at the scalpel. “But when he was disemboweled, I would say that was done by hand. Someone reached into his body, grabbed his intestines and organs, and ripped them out.”

Carlos is thankful for his strong stomach. “They would have been bloody, then?”

“Extremely. But there were no drips or footprints at the scene, so whoever did this definitely knew what they were doing.”

They knew how to clean up blood.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> forgot i changed my update sched sorry

Carlos has managed, after a day and a half, to come up with no real evidence to arrest someone for the murder of Owen Strand. There was no forensic evidence really, except for how telling the lack of it was. No one will give him a straight answer on anything. While TK is still his prime suspect, for obvious reasons, observing him makes it hard to believe that he has it in him to murder. He’s apathetic and traumatized, but he’s also more scared than anything. His father was abusive, and now, that same father he has relied on his entire life is gone in a rather horrific way. TK seems almost too detached from it to have killed him. 

He’s looked into the 126 too, and they don’t seem to have put down real roots in Austin. Not the new firefighters, anyways. Judd Ryder’s wife and friends don’t think him capable of hurting a fly. Michelle Blake’s only friends are people she volunteers with, who said much the same. Nancy Gillian and Tim Rosewater are unassuming, with no one thinking they’d commit murder, but not too sure that they’re incapable of it. As for Marjan Marwani, Mateo Chavez, and Paul Strickland-- there isn’t much to go on in the city at all. Public pressure is mounting nonetheless, however. Captain Strand was loved by the civilians. They want to see someone rot for the grisly, humiliating death. 

It’s hard to do, but he’s forced to release TK from custody, and watch him cling to the 126, all of whom arrived to pick him up. He buries his face in Judd’s chest as they all crowd around him protectively, even the paramedics. Michelle glances at Carlos and it sends a chill down his spine. She looks almost smug. Like she knows something he doesn't, and he won’t be able to solve this case because of it. He trusts his instincts; that’s how he got this far in the APD. But his instincts alone are not enough for an arrest, let alone a conviction, no matter how clear it seems to him that one of these eight people did it.

Officer Tamin hands him a coffee as he looks over the file again. Someone went to Owen Strand’s house and killed him. Captain Strand either let them in or they had a key. They knew the dog wouldn’t be there. And they knew that the victim abused his son and Mateo Chavez. 

“You know who we haven’t talked to?” she asks.

“Owen Strand.”

She squints at him for a moment to see if he’s serious before continuing. “Judd Ryder’s wife, Grace. She works 911 dispatch. If the victim called 911, he probably would have asked to speak to her. These firefighters-- they’re tight knit. He wouldn’t talk to someone he didn’t trust. Say Grace knew, she could have dismissed the call.”

“That’s a wild theory with way too many assumptions,” Carlos answers. “But, it might be worth talking to her to see what she knows. You coming with?”

They take the cruiser, fully marked, to make sure Judd knows they’re onto him. Someone killed Captain Strand, and whether he deserved it or not, murder is still a crime. One this horrific and clearly pre-planned will earn capital punishment from the harsh court. Not pretty, but the law. An image of TK strapped down for a lethal injection pops into his brain, leaving Carlos distressed and worried for the entire drive.

Once they get to the Ryder residence and knock, Grace answers the door. She’s a fair bit shorter than Judd, with a much kinder and more open face that crumples in confusion and fear. “Did something happen to Judd?”

“No, ma’am,” Carlos assures quickly. “Your husband is just fine. I’m Detective Reyes, this is Officer Tamin. We just wanted to ask you a few questions, if that’s alright.”

She waves them in and pours three glasses of iced tea, the picture of southern hospitality. The home is clean and organized, with lots of photos peppered on the walls. Pictures of the former 126, mostly. Carlos recognizes their faces from the obituary and the long-standing memorial before Captain Strand came to the city and put the firehouse back together. There’s a photo of the new 126 as well, but the Captain missing from it rather conspicuously.

“We just wanted to ask you a few questions about Captain Strand.”

“Oh, sure. I was sorry to hear about him. Poor TK.”

Officer Tamin gives Carlos a look. She’s not so openly angry as the rest of them are, even if she seems more apathetic than mournful. Maybe she didn’t know the victim all that well. But either way, she could provide some further insight into the team dynamic, something to help Carlos get to the bottom of all this before he gets demoted for his incompetence.

“Were you close with him?”

Grace shakes her head. “No. I don’t know why, but Judd just- he didn’t want me near the captain. I was always around at his own firehouse, and I know his new crew pretty well, but he just insisted that I keep my distance from Owen. I figured it was ‘cause Judd’s still working through losing his old cap.”

He was protecting her. Carlos can understand that. He gets the same sort of instinct thinking about TK, which is something he’s trying to ignore before it compromises the investigation. That’s not what he should be focusing on.

“Did Judd talk about him? Maybe that he was angry at the captain?”

The welcoming, open expression on Grace’s face falls flat. “You don’t think he did that?”

This is one of the hard parts. Not telling the victim’s family that they will never come home for dinner again. But telling the murderer’s family that their loved one is capable of such cruelty, that’s a sort of heartbreaking Carlos didn’t expect.

“We’re just looking into some things,” he says. “Captain Strand knew his attacker, so we’re just covering our bases.”

“Well, I don’t think Judd and Owen really got along, but my husband isn’t a murderer,” Grace says firmly. “And I don’t appreciate you implying he could be.”

Carlos sighs. That’s not the point. “We’re just doing our due diligence, Mrs. Ryder, we don’t mean any offence. You say you don’t think they got along, why was that?”

She’s hesitant to speak to him now, all too aware that this is more of an investigation than a friendly stop-by. He doesn’t blame her. As a child, he felt the same apprehension at the attention of police, something which has faded since he became a cop himself. She’s looking between him and Officer Tamin like she’s afraid the wrong answer will bring the world crashing down on her. Carlos wishes he could hug her and tell her it’s okay, but he doesn’t know it could be.

“I don’t know much, honestly. Judd didn’t talk about him. When he did, it was kind of like you talk about rotten food, you know. He just didn’t like him.”

That part isn’t too surprising. “Did he talk about TK Strand?”

“Oh, he loves TK,” Grace smiles at the thought. “We have that boy over to dinner almost every week. Sweet kid.”

“And what do you know about TK’s relationship with his father?”

“They always seemed close, but TK was also angry with him a lot. He didn’t ever say why.”

The last question Carlos asks is if Judd was home all night when the victim died, which she confirms. She doesn’t sound too sure, though, and he leaves his card in case she decides to turn on him. If someone doesn’t turn over, they might not be able to solve this case. Someone who’s not directly involved, and doesn’t like what happened.

The weak link.

When they get outside, Carlos turns to Officer Tamin. “I think Mateo Chavez might be our best bet. But if we just approach him, he won’t be alone. That firehouse is protective.”

“So what’re you thinking?”

“I’m thinking we’re going to have to use TK.”


	5. Chapter 5

“Thank you for meeting me.”

TK doesn’t respond, instead biting on the straw of his boba. It’s a weird place to meet to talk about a murder investigation, but if this is what it takes for TK to help him, Carlos supposes it’ll have to do. He’s fairly sure still that TK is involved somehow, but he’s banking on the man’s guilt to get some help. There’s something in the slant of his shoulders that says he knows something, and just needs a little encouragement to give it up. 

“I was hoping you could call Mateo for me.”

Whatever response he expected, it wasn’t for TK to narrow his eyes and tilt his head to the side, almost as if he doesn’t understand the question. “Because…?”

“He could be helpful for the investigation, but not if I get in touch with him directly. He’s scared, relies on the rest of your firehouse to talk for him.”

“Oh, this is about my dad’s murder?”

He takes a long, annoying sip of his boba, chewing thoughtfully at the pearls that come up through the straw. It’s terrifying how calm he is. But there’s something about it that maybe gets Carlos’ attention, too; he wants to hold TK and take away whatever pain led him to this point, but also finally get a confession from those cherry red lips. Instead, he watches TK enjoy the tea and watch Carlos carefully.

“What else would it be about?”

“I dunno.” TK shrugs. “I’m not going to help you.”

They just watch each other for a moment. Sharing gazes. Waiting for the other one to say something, give in. This is the world’s most intricate game of chess and TK thinks he’s winning just because Carlos hasn’t figured it all out yet. But this is a long game, and the more defensive he is, the more guilty he seems. It’s almost undoubted that TK was involved. It’s just not proven yet.

“If you just talk to me, I can help you, TK. I know something happened to you, and that’s extenuating circumstances,” Carlos reminds him. “Just tell me why, or what happened.”

“Make me.”

He smirks a little, satisfied with himself, and pulls out his wallet to pay for his boba. 

“You should just let it go, okay? No one’s gonna talk to you. And he deserved what he got.”

When TK walks away, Carlos is powerless to stop him. He has nothing but vague implications of guilt. However, he has more proof that the 126 did this, even if it’s not quite concrete. He needs to get in contact with Mateo, and whispers a little prayer as he dials the kid’s number. If TK called, it would be easy. Now, he’s not sure if this means Mateo will show up with another member of the firehouse, and if so, how aggressive they’ll get. Carlos hasn’t figured out yet if any of them would go so far as to get rid of him for investigating, and if he’s lucky, he won’t ever find out.

“Who is this?”

“Hey, Mr. Chavez,” Carlos says. He’s got his fingers crossed under the table. “It’s Detective Reyes. I was hoping we could talk?”

“I…”

Carlos watches TK get into an Uber, all too aware that he’s being watched as well. “No one on your team has to know. I just want to ask you a few questions alone, that’s all.”

“I don’t think I’m supposed to talk to you.”

“No one has to know. Where can we meet to talk?”

The other line clicks, indicating Mateo has hung up. No luck. He probably would have if TK had just cooperated. That’s not the case, though, and it’s almost like he’s dealing with the mafia at this point. No one turns because they’re all too close, too loyal, and practically indoctrinated into the group. Perhaps he should look at it like that. Organized crime, or a cult. Something bad happened. There’s victims there. He just has to make them feel safe enough to open up. 

He texts Mateo a safe, neutral, non-suspicious location. Some bar, just far enough from Station 126 to feel safe but distanced, and an invitation to talk to him. A promise that Mateo won’t be hurt. That it’s just talking.

While there’s no response, he still makes plans to take Tamin to the bar with him tonight and hope for the best. He pays for his own milk tea, which didn’t even taste that good in the first place, before going back to the precinct to wait the afternoon out. If he can’t turn Mateo, he might as well admit to his captain that he’s not good enough for this job. This is important, and he’s been trusted enough to take the case and help Officer Tamin cut her teeth on it.

The best he’s got is a hunch. Based on the analysis of the murder weapon, and the autopsy of the victim’s crime, one of the paramedics cut him open. Probably Michelle. She’s the angriest of the three, and she has a record from some guy named Dustin who put out a restraining order and accused her of stalking him. The scalpel matches the EMS issue, as well. But the castration wasn’t clean. That wasn’t done by one of the paramedics, but a firefighter. Marjan, maybe. She’s been nothing but agitated. Judd most likely held Captain Strand down while it all happened. As for who did the real damage of ripping out his organs, that could have been anyone. Even TK, his hands soaked up to the wrist in dark blood and his eyes blank, mouth half-smiling in the way it has the entire investigation.

“You could use a drink,” Officer Tamin says, pulling him from his thoughts. “While we’re at the bar tonight, I’ll buy you something.”

“Can’t drink while I’m on duty, and neither can you.”

She pouts but doesn’t argue with him. Instead, she hands him a crisp manila folder. “The official coroner’s report, by the way. His cause of death is homicide by exsanguination? He bled out, I think it means. But they did find more stuff on his body.”

“Like what?” he asks, even as he opens the file.

“Bruises on his upper arms, likely from being held down. They’re hand shaped. Coroner has a rough estimate of the size of the hands based on the bruises, if that helps. And he had a-” her face screws up. “Basically there was a bruise on his brain. Hit his head.”

“Possibly during the struggle,” Carlos fills in. The victim would have been struggling against the restraint and the attack. If he hit his head, or was hit in the head, it would have made the process easier. He’d be less capable of fighting back. “I have a theory, but no proof.”

Tamin plops down beside him and hands him his coffee as well. She’s got a good head on her shoulders. 

“You have any ideas, Tamin?”

“Uh, kinda.”

Carlos nudges her arm in encouragement. “What’ve you got? Trust your gut.”

She’s hesitant, but after a few seconds, she chugs the remainder of her coffee and opens the case file in front of them, spreading out the photos of the 126. The worst thing that happens is she doesn’t have a plausible theory. Best case scenario, she could help him crack this case right open.

“First of all, I don’t think Mateo Chavez was involved,” she says, dragging his photo away from the others. “He didn’t seem to know that Captain Strand was going to die, and he’s upset by it. So he didn’t know. But he was allegedly with Paul Strickland.” Tamin places his picture with Mateo’s. “And Paul Strickland knew. So he probably was in charge of keeping Mateo as far from it all as possible, to protect him emotionally and legally. They both get an alibi.” Then she focuses on TK. “I think he knew. He let the killers into the apartment. He didn’t physically touch the victim, but he was part of the plot. One of the paramedics-” she pulls aside the photos of Michelle Blake, Gillian, and Rosewater, “cut him open. I think it was Michelle Blake’s idea. The charges got dropped, but I found an arrest on her record for assaulting that guy, Dustin, with a scalpel. She almost stabbed him. Judd Ryder and the other paramedics held him down.”

She leans back, seeming to be finished. It’s a good theory, and it fills in a lot of holes. It explains away Mateo’s reaction, the bruises on the victim’s legs, and how they all got in. There’s still some gaps, but it’s better than before, between Carlos’ theory and hers. “You’re right,” he says. “About Mateo and Paul. I’ll bring it up tonight.” She smiles as he adds, “You did good.”


	6. Chapter 6

Sitting in this bar is driving Carlos crazy. He needs to be doing something. For the millionth time, he reminds himself that this is doing something, but it doesn’t feel like that when he’s playing mindless games on his phone while hoping Mateo shows up. Tamin is nursing a soda beside him, too nervous to even look at her phone, because she’s not used to questioning someone like this. It’s something she’ll have to get used to.

“What do we do if he doesn’t come?”

“We figure it out.”

The bartender is clearly irritated they’re taking up space and not drinking, but he doesn’t dare kick them out when he catches the gleam of a badge on Carlos’ hip. It’s one of the good things about being a cop, he guesses. 

Almost half an hour after the agreed meeting time, when Tamin is close to calling it a night, Carlos catches Mateo’s eye across the bar, where he’s just come through the doors. He came. A weight lifts off Carlos’ shoulders as Mateo gets a beer and brings himself to their table struggling slightly to get up onto the high barstool. He won’t look at anything but his drink or the oak tabletop, but the fact that he’s here is a sign he’s going to help them.

“Thank you for coming,” Carlos says. “I really appreciate it.”

Mateo shrugs. 

“I heard you were out clubbing with Paul when Captain Strand passed. When did you guys decide to go out?”

“Just a couple hours before my shift ended,” Mateo admits. He’s picking at the label of his drink. “I was having a really rough day and Paul thought it would cheer me up.”

Tamin leans forward. “What was rough about your day?”

“Cap was in a mood. He was angry at us, especially TK, and when I was helping him calm down in the locker room, Judd came in and Cap shoved me. I hit my head on the locker.”

He holds his hand to the back of his head, like he’s remembering the way it felt when it slammed against the metal. They knew there was something off already, but Carlos is really hung up on his words. Helping the victim calm down in the locker room. Getting pushed away when someone else could have seen them. The implications of it make him nauseous. 

“How were you helping the captain calm down?”

Mateo looks off to the side again. He can’t seem to look Carlos in the eyes, similar to TK, and it makes him ache for the kid. There’s something about him that yells child, protect me, help me, and it sets off every protective instinct in Carlos’ body. For a moment, he wishes Mateo won’t tell him. Then he can pretend a little longer that this investigation isn’t an abuse case as well as a homicide.

“I’m not supposed to talk about it,” Mateo finally says. “But he’s- he’s really gone, right? He’s actually dead?”

Officer Tamin reaches out for his hand to reassure him. “He can never hurt you, or anyone else, ever again.”

“My team won’t know what I said?”

“We won’t tell them,” Carlos assures. “We just want to know what happened.”

He’s still nervous, and needs to finish his drink before he’s willing to admit what happened. What Captain Strand did to him, and most definitely did to TK. He still leaves out the majority of the details, but he says he was on his knees and the victim was sitting on the locker room bench, and he tells them that he never liked the taste. He also says that sometimes the Captain returned the favor, but he never liked that either. 

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” Carlos says. He means it. 

“It’s not like I said no.”

Tamin shifts beside Carlos, and when he looks at her, there’s something hard in her face. “That doesn’t matter. He’s your captain, in a position of power over you, and he’s old enough to be your father. You didn’t want it, and even if you didn’t say no, that doesn’t make it right.”

In an unexpected response, Mateo starts crying. Not just a few tears, like at the firehouse, but full sobs and hiding his face behind his hands. It’s rough, to the point that Carlos helps him off his stool and leads him outside for fresh air to calm him down. Tamin settles their tab- he’ll pay her back later- and joins them after a minute. While they sit outside, Carlos rubs his back until he can breathe a little bit easier.

“Is there someone I can call for you?”

Mateo shakes his head frantically. Right. He doesn’t want the team to know he said anything.

“Do you want a ride home?”

He refuses that too, and asks them in a careful voice if TK has said anything about what happened to him. Before Carlos can say no, Mateo answers himself in a negative and stands up, evidently ready to leave, before leaving them with something else to think about.

“I think it was Marjan’s idea,” he admits softly. “When Judd told the team what he saw, she was the angriest. She told me she was going to make it stop.”

Just like that he’s gone, and Carlos has another lead. He’s going to have to go see Marjan again, and she’ll be angry, but he has to be as careful as possible to protect Mateo from the wrath of his teammates should they consider him a traitor to whatever cause they’ve turned the victim’s death into.

Once he’s left, Carlos drives himself and Tamin to Marjan’s house, where she’s in the middle of dinner with TK. TK takes one look at Carlos and blurts out, “You talked to Mateo, didn’t you?”

Marjan’s eyes go wide, even if she tries to hide her reaction by standing up and going to the kitchen, offering to make her guests a plate. Carlos isn’t here to eat. 

“Officer Tamin, take Mr. Strand outside, please.”

“Am I under arrest?” TK counters. “You can’t arrest me in my house.”

“You’re not under arrest, that’s not true, and it’s not your house. Go outside.”

TK looks ready to argue more, but Tamin wraps a hand around his arm and he says, “I’m going, I’m going,” as she leads him outside. Carlos feels a little bad about it, but he doesn’t want TK here for this in case things escalate. They’ll have to get Mateo a protective detail too, in case he becomes too much of a liability for the comfort of the 118 crew. Better safe than sorry.

“Is it true?” Marjan asks. “Mateo talked to you?”

“I can’t confirm or deny that. I’m here to talk about you, Marjan, so let’s do that.”

She leans against her counter and crosses her arms. “Still investigating the cap’s murder? Why won’t you let that go?”

“Because it was a murder.”

Marjan hums but doesn’t seem at all interested in him continuing to look into this. It’s frustrating. He wants to scream at how frustrating this is. At some point, someone has to break. They always do. Mateo has, but it’s just not enough, not yet. 

“You were angry when Judd told you what he saw.” 

“And what is it you think he told me?”

It would be so much easier not to say it. But Carlos has to. “He told you he saw Captain Strand sexually assaulting Mateo.”

Her face is almost blank in the face of that news. Not angry or disbelieving, just empty, as though she can’t process his words. It’s a normal response, just not from someone who planned the murder of someone in cold blood and got their friends to help mutilate a man. She doesn’t even respond to him, instead beginning to wash the dishes as though he hasn’t said anything at all. 

“Marjan, if you tell me the truth, I can help you. Maybe you weren’t thinking straight, maybe it triggered something for you-”

“I’m not a snitch.”

Before Carlos can respond, he hears Tamin yell outside, and then the tell-tale sound of a gun going off. He runs to the front door.


	7. Chapter 7

Marjan is already calling 911 behind Carlos as he processes the scene in front of him. Tamin is on her feet with a bloody nose, gun extended out in front of her, shaking a little with the adrenaline and pain. But it’s TK who needs help, splayed out on the street in a pool of blood, the back of his shirt soaked with it on the shoulder. As Marjan talks to the dispatcher, kneeling next to TK and putting pressure on the wound, Carlos pushes Tamin’s arms down. 

“Put down the gun, officer,” he orders. “Lower your weapon.”

He helps her sit down and takes the gun from her before radioing dispatch himself.

“Detective Reyes, Homicide, to dispatch.”

“Go ahead, Reyes.”

“I’m at 1517 Union Street, code 444. Male, mid twenties, GSW to shoulder. I have an off-duty paramedic attending to him now, and she’s already called 911, put a rush on that call. I’ve disarmed the officer involved. She has a possible broken nose.”

“Copy that, sending a unit and a bus to you now.”

As much as he hates to do it, Carlos has to cuff Tamin until he knows what happened. She doesn’t look to be in any real medical distress, and there’s no weapon to be seen. Just to be sure, he pats down TK’s body- something Marjan doesn’t appreciate. She shoulders him out of the way. 

“He’s unarmed. He didn’t do anything.”

“He did something if my partner shot him.”

Marjan scoffs and puts more pressure on the wound, even as TK groans in pain. “Yeah, sure.”

Within minutes, the ambulance is there, and Carlos is torn between going with TK and staying with Tamin. In the end, he chooses Officer Tamin, who keeps staring at the blood on the pavement where he was laying. “Hey,” he says. “What happened, Kat?”

“He elbowed me in the face,” she answers. Her voice sounds hollow. “Then he tried to run. I told him to stop and he didn’t.”

“He was running away when you shot him?”

She doesn’t answer. 

Her union rep arrives with the unit to officially arrest her- Carlos can’t, not when they’re close. They take her away, and Carlos is left to go to the hospital, having gotten the address from the paramedics before they left. He has to talk to TK about this. Find out why he was running. Why he hit Tamin. Where he was going. But when he arrives, it’s not shocking that the whole 118 is there. Except Mateo. That’s worrying. He texts one of the other homicide detectives to keep an eye on Mateo before going into the hospital room.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Judd tells him. He stands protectively between Carlos and TK. “You’re the reason he got shot.”

“I’m not the one who did it.”

“Doesn’t make it not your fault.”

Carlos doesn’t have a response to that. Luckily, he doesn’t have to, because TK makes a distressed noise from his bed and all the focus is back on him. He’ll probably be fine. It was a clean shot through, hit no vital organs. Nothing to worry about. Carlos has been shot like that before, and within a few months, he was back at work without a problem. 

He bullies his way past Paul and Michelle to get to TK’s bedside, which makes his face curl up in anger despite how exhausted and pale he is. “You tell her to shoot me?”

“What? I wouldn’t-”

“You need to leave,” Marjan says firmly and shoves him hard enough to make him stumble.

This isn’t the place. It isn’t the right choice. He’ll only make things worse. But this is the chance Carlos needs to get some serious leverage against someone who was actively involved in the murder as opposed to a bystander like Mateo. Carlos does what he thinks is best. 

“Put your hands behind your back.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

Judd shoves him too. “Leave her alone, man. Get out of here.”

In answer, Carlos radios for security and grabs Marjan by the shoulder, pulling her closer to him and wrenching her arms behind her back. She stands there and allows it, staring at her teammates as though she’s telling them something.

“Marjan Marwani, you’re under arrest for assaulting an officer. You have the right to remain silent…”

He finishes reading her her rights and then turns to Judd. By now, security has arrived, and happily provides him with an extra pair of cuffs to arrest him on the same charge. They even help him take the two down to his car for a ride to the station. Finally, he might be getting somewhere. Finally. But that doesn’t negate the look on TK’s face or the way they keep whispering to each other behind him no matter how many times he tells them to be quiet. This has to work. If he doesn’t solve this, TK was shot for nothing, and Tamin’s career could be over. 

A couple of uniformed officers bring Judd and Marjan in for him, placing them in separate interrogation rooms. Carlos sends another detective in to talk to Judd while he goes to see Marjan. She’s still. Watching him. Waiting for him to make the first move, like this is a chess match and not a murder interrogation.

“You can go to jail for a year,” Carlos tells her, “for putting your hands on me.”

“You deserved it.”

“Like Captain Strand deserved to die?”

She tilts her head to the side. “He did.”

“And you were part of that, right?”

“I’m not confessing.”

Carlos wishes he could just make her admit it. Admit she did something wrong. Admit she planned and carried out murder. Admit that she did something. 

“I know you want to protect your family, and you want to protect yourself. I get that. I do. But this isn’t going to go away, and I promise, it will be so much easier on all of you if you just tell me the truth about what happened. I know that Captain Strand did awful things to Mateo and TK, and that’s- that’s grounds for a good defense. You don’t have to get the death penalty, or even life in prison, Marjan, if you just talk to me.”

“I’d rather die.”

He sighs and tries a different approach. Something has to get through to her. It has to. 

“We know Michelle is the one who cut him open.” 

Marjan raises an eyebrow at him. 

“And we know you’re the one who castrated him. Did Captain Strand ever do anything to you, Marjan?”

“Not to me.”

He’s not getting anywhere with her. “But you know he abused Mateo and TK. Didn’t that make you mad?”

“Of course it made me mad. I wanted to kill him for what he did to them! There’s no excuse for that, I mean, he just- I can’t believe anyone would do that, especially to their own son, and he- he deserved everything he got. He deserved it!”

When she’s finished, Carlos just stares at her. It seems to register what she’s just said, and she sinks back in her chair, defeated. She knows what she’s said. But she’s not going to let someone else take the fall for it, Carlos can see it in her eyes.

“I did it by myself,” she says.

“No you didn’t. The forensic evidence shows there were at least two other people involved, and TK had to have given you his key. It’ll be easier if you tell me who was with you. I already know, but it’ll be better if you tell me.”

“Rot in hell.”

Carlos slides a notepad and pen to her across the table. “Write down everything that happened. How you got into Captain Strand’s apartment, how you killed him, how you got the blood off you. Everything.”

She picks up the pen and mouths a prayer, but before she puts the ink to paper, the door of the interrogation room opens. “Reyes.” 

He steps out while she begins to write, and asks what’s going on once the door is safely shut. 

“Ryder just confessed. Implicated Marwani, TK Strand, and the paramedics in the murder. You should talk to him.”

That’s a shock. But it’s a good thing. It means this case is almost over. “Stop Marjan from writing her confession until I hear his side of the story. She’s trying to take the fall for it.”

The other detective takes his place in the interrogation room, and Carlos goes to look through the window at Judd. He has a lawyer with him, a public defender, and he’s staring at the wall with a wet gleam on his cheeks. This can’t have been easy. But it’s a good thing.


	8. Chapter 8

The DA is on Carlos’ right, a court reporter on his left taking this all down as it happens so they have a proper, written record of it. “In exchange for my client’s testimony,” Judd’s lawyer says, “he wants full immunity for his participation. He has a wife and a child on the way who rely on him for financial and emotional support.”

Carlos’ instinct is to say no, they all deserve punishment for it, but the DA wants to get the others. He wants to see as many people involved go down as possible, and that means letting Judd go free. That said, it’s on the condition that the others are convicted. If not, he’ll be charged plain and simple as an accomplice. How that works, Carlos doesn’t know, but it’s better than nothing. Someone will go down for this. 

“Okay, Mr. Ryder,” the DA says. “Tell us what happened.”

“We started talking about it when I saw what Cap was doing to Mateo. He shoved him hard when I walked in, made him hit his head. Then he pulled up his pants like nothing happened and pretended not to notice me. He just left. I helped Mateo up, and the kid was almost crying, but he wouldn’t say a word about what had happened. Kept brushing it off. Before then, we all kinda knew something was up. Owen just wasn’t right to Mateo and TK. And the night before, Marjan was on the phone with TK, and she heard Owen backhand him. Heard TK cry. That’s why he started living with her, really, and it was a huge thing. Cap was really mad about it. I told Marjan about it, and she told everyone else, and we all kinda met up at the bar that night, except Mateo and Owen.

“It was TK’s idea, I think. He said he wanted Owen dead, for all the shit he did, and Marjan said we could do that, and I’ll be honest, that was the last TK was involved for a while. He didn’t like talking about it, said Owen was still his dad, but he didn’t tell us not to, or call anyone about it. So I guess it didn’t really matter to him. But all of us, we were talking about it, and Marjan decided on the night. Said someone should take Mateo out, keep him company while it was going on and start establishing an alibi. Paul volunteered. He kept out of the conversation after that too. Plausible deniability, and such.

“When the night came, we all came to Owen’s. Not at once, though. That’d be too suspicious. TK had the key and let us all in, since Owen was sleeping. His chemo stuff, it knocked him out good. They said he was in remission, but he was still on a bunch of drugs to keep it that way, I guess. Everyone was all quiet the whole time except for TK. He kept saying this was a bad idea, and Cap was gonna be mad at us. Tim and Nancy got stuff together. Some good cleaning supplies to get the blood off, and stuff to burn clothes that we couldn’t save. We brought clean clothes, too, in TK’s suitcase. He was gonna stay all night and call the cops in the morning to throw everyone off. I didn’t think that was too smart, but he insisted on it. I think he always wanted to be punished for it, kinda. He blamed himself a lot, that kid. For what Owen did to him. I think it went on for years. TK was always nervous about going places without him, and afraid of making him mad. 

“TK was the one who woke him up, too. ‘Accidentally’ made too much noise getting his stuff, and he and Owen really got into it. Came downstairs bc TK said he was just gonna leave, and then Owen grabbed his arm, said he couldn’t walk out like that. I don’t know what would have happened if they were alone. But we were all there, and the paramedics and I grabbed him, pulled him away. TK was kinda in shock after that, for a bit. Stood by the sink and watched. I helped hold him down, and so did Nancy and Tim, but he wouldn’t stay still. Michelle stomped on his head, at some point. Made it hit the tile. He kinda calmed down after that, it was easier to hold him still. She cut him open, then, and kinda looked at all of us. Like she wanted to know what to do next. I could see all his guts and he was really freaking out. Bleeding a lot. 

“Marjan got down on the floor next to him. She put his hand into his body and just started- I don’t know. She was ripping him apart, kinda. Putting everything on the floor. She was really angry. Michelle helped her, and it was during that part that Owen passed out. Blood loss and shock, I think. I wasn’t really processing it then. Just holding his shoulders, still, and watching it go down. Nancy and Tim started cleaning up Marjan and Michelle, getting rid of the blood for them. The scalpel was on the floor.

“Then TK moved again. He knelt next to Owen and he wasn’t even really there. His eyes were blank. He picked up that knife and just cut off Owen’s thing like it was the most normal thing in the world. I always saw him cut his steak like that, you know? I didn’t say anything, just kept holding him down, and TK threw it behind him when he was done. About a minute later, I think Owen was actually dead.

“TK kinda lost it after that, I think. He was crying really hard, so we took him to the shower to clean up. While Nancy and Tim burned his clothes, Marjan and I helped him rinse off and put on new pajamas. She had to go home soon and establish an alibi, but Nancy and I stayed with TK a while longer than everyone else. Kid was kinda in shock, I think. I left a little before sunrise, but I didn’t feel good about it. He was clearly struggling. But I still went home to Grace, and when I went to work the next day, it was weird. Everyone was a lot happier. Lighter, I guess. Joking around and stuff. Mateo asked where Owen was a couple times, but we all said not to worry. He didn’t know what happened until you came to the station and told us. We didn’t want him to see that. Probably shouldn’t have let TK, either, but it was kinda his idea in the first place, I guess, so maybe that was unavoidable.

“I know I’m just as much responsible as they all are, but I can’t leave Grace behind. And I get they all have families too, but with the baby on the way, I just can’t do it. I can’t leave her. I didn’t think about any of that until you started asking questions, and I really didn’t wanna say anything, but I can’t let this go on. TK got shot. And I know that’s not on him, really, but it wouldn’t have happened if I said something before. So I’m saying it now.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you don't like my fic, don't read it instead of leaving multi-paragraph comments complaining about it. Lmao.

By the end of the day, everyone involved is in police custody except for TK, who Carlos visits in the hospital. He has to arrest him now, whether he wants to or not. The room is empty save for Mateo, all of TK’s family dead or arrested, and even Mateo looks sad as he holds TK’s hand. 

“It’s gonna be okay. They’re all gonna get really good lawyers, and I heard the only witness the police have is Judd. Everything’s going to be fine.”

Carlos clears his throat and they both look at him. TK seems healthier than he did a couple days ago, the color beginning to return to his cheeks. He glowers at Carlos as though trying to make him leave, but there’s not a chance of that. This is his job, no matter what. Even if he thinks TK should be the one getting immunity, leniency for all this. Out of all of them, he’s the one who actually endured years of abuse. The others were just angry. They don’t have an excuse for it in the way TK does.

“You’re arresting me. Did your friend who shot me in the back get arrested?”

He winces. “Not yet. They’re still investigating.”

TK rolls his eyes, and sits up slightly despite the clear pain on his face. It reminds Carlos to check in on that, find out what’s going on. He still doesn’t really understand why Tamin shot him, and he wants to know. She was a good cop. She had the makings of a fantastic detective. It doesn’t sit right with him. But this isn’t about her, it’s about TK participating in the brutal murder and mutilation of his father, an indefensible act in the eyes of the community. He has a chance of freedom if he takes a plea. Already, Paul and Michelle are working on plea deals. 

“TK Strand, you’re under arrest for first degree murder.” 

He reads him his rights as he cuffs TK to the hospital bed. It feels wrong. It has to be done though. He expects to be insulted, yelled at- some expression of anger. Instead, TK asks Mateo to give them a moment, and leans close to Carlos’ face. So close he can see the dilation of TK’s pupils from the pain meds they’ve been giving him. It’s too close. But Carlos can’t make himself lean away. 

“If you uncuff me, I’ll take care of you.”

“Do not solicit me, TK.”

“Because you’ll say yes?”

Carlos stands up quickly. No. TK’s a victim and a perp all at once, and he’s probably half-high right now, and it’s a bad idea. He doesn’t want to have sex with him under these circumstances (or any other, he tells himself), and the mere idea of it makes him feel sick. TK’s only offering because he’s spent his life using it to keep himself safe from his father. It’s not right. 

“You’ll be transferred to the jail hospital when you’re stable, awaiting trial unless you plea it out. Do you have a lawyer?”

“I don’t want a lawyer.”

“You need one.”

Mateo comes around to the other side of TK’s bed. “I’ll make sure he gets one, Detective Reyes. You can leave.”

It’s the bravest Carlos has seen him, and it shocks him enough to actually obey Mateo’s thinly veiled command. He doesn’t realize how much bravery that must have taken until he’s already back in his cruiser, ready to go check on Tamin. She must be a wreck. This is the first time she’s ever discharged her weapon. She was in the wrong, shooting TK in the back like that, but something happened, and Carlos intends to find out.

He meets her at a bar by her house, where she’s already verging into tipsy territory, and tells the bartender to switch her to water when he takes a seat beside her. She looks different out of uniform, and like she hasn’t slept since she shot TK. She probably hasn’t. 

“Hey,” he says.

“I don’t wanna talk about it.”

Carlos shakes his head. “We have to. What were you thinking?”

She doesn’t answer him at first, instead finishing off her current shot of something strong-smelling and toying with the empty holster on her hip. She’s still wearing it, even when her gun’s been confiscated for the duration of the investigation. 

“He was going to go tell the rest of the 126.”

“That’s not a reason to shoot him.”

“No, I know that, it’s just-” Tamin tilts her head back and squints at the ceiling like she’s trying not to cry. “Do you know what he said to me?”

It’s hard not to be frustrated. “No, I don’t, because you haven’t told me.”

“He said they’d kill me too, and you, for investigating. I couldn’t-”

She breaks off into a sob. And yeah, Carlos knows that fear intimately, but she still shouldn’t have shot him. Nonetheless, it isn’t something to lose her badge over. “Did you tell that to your union rep?”

“Yeah. He said I’ll probably be back to full duty after a psych eval, but I can’t- what if he meant it?”

“He didn’t mean it.”

Although Carlos doesn’t doubt that Michelle or Marjan would kill both of them, if they thought it would protect their team. They can’t now, though. They’re both in custody. They’re going away for a long time, and there’s nothing they can do to hurt him or Tamin. It’s going to be okay. He says at much to her in hopes of comforting her, but honestly, she’s too busy in her own head to hear him. So he tells her to get home safe and returns to his own with a deep exhaustion in his bones. The case is going to trial. It’s over, as far as he’s concerned, unless he’s called to testify a few months down the line. He should put it out of his head like every single other homicide he’s worked, but something about it just doesn’t settle.

When he lays down in bed, he’s thinking about TK, and his unhealthy offer. Part of him wanted to say yes, no matter how wrong it would be. If they met a different way, it could have been different, but as of now, there’s never going to be anything there. Just a memory of the kid who was pushed to the edge. Nothing worth dwelling on. 

He dreams of TK that night. Of how he looked splayed out on the street covered in his own blood after Tamin shot him. Standing in that kitchen drinking water while staring at his father’s dead body. Looking at Carlos’ lips as he offered him sex from a hospital bed he was cuffed to. It’s not right. He feels guilty for even thinking about taking up the offer, but it would have been so easy. The temptation was strong.

Maybe after this is over, if TK doesn’t get life in prison or worse, he can think about it. That’s a compromise that settles his mind enough to feel less sick to his stomach when he wakes up, even if he still doubts that it’s the right thing to do.

This morning, he has to go to court properly and sit in the benches for arraignment. Allegedly they’ll all go through at once, since the trial won’t be separated out, except for TK. He’s the special case because of the abuse, and probably because of the gunshot as well. Tamin could have seriously jeopardized this case. There’s no telling yet if she hasn’t. 

It’ll be okay though, he tells himself, until he gets the phone call from the hospital. 

“What do you mean you don’t know where he is?”


	10. Chapter 10

Everyone is looking to Carlos for the protocol because it’s his case, his missing perp, his fault. He should’ve put a heavier security detail on TK. Then, maybe they wouldn’t be assembled in the bullpen like this, talking about putting a perimeter on the whole damn city to make sure TK doesn’t get far.

“I don’t think he’s a danger to us,” Carlos says. “A few days ago, he was shot in the shoulder. He’ll be in pain or on heavy painkillers, which is going to slow him down. He’s most likely not armed. It’s possible he could have an accomplice, Mateo Chavez.” He points to Mateo’s photo up on the board. “Mateo was Captain Strand’s other victim, and the only member of the 126 not in police custody. He likely helped TK escape, and may still be with him. There is no reason to believe Mateo is dangerous. I don’t want any shots fired unless they are an active immediate threat. We’ll start at the hospital and fan out from there. A BOLO has already been issued statewide, and there are units on their houses and the houses of their crew.”

He dismisses the group and gets ready to go out himself. He has his cuffs, gun, vest and badge, but it still feels like he’s missing something without Tamin next to him in the passenger seat. He misses her. As if on cue, his phone lights up with her name- she must be missing work, Carlos knows he did when he was out on medical leave. He connects it to bluetooth before answering.

“You see the news?” he asks.

“Didn’t have to. Reyes, he’s outside my house.”

Carlos flips on the light bar and siren, headed toward her. “Is he armed?”

“Not that I can see. My door is locked, and so are all the windows.”

“Just stay put, I’m on my way. Backup might get there before me.”

He presses his radio. “Attention nearby units in the search for TK Strand- he has been located outside the house of off-duty Officer Katriona Tamin. 1777 Century. Officer Tamin reports he does not appear to be armed.”

A flurry of officers respond that they’re en route, and yet Carlos manages to be the first one on the scene. TK’s just sitting on Tamin’s front porch, waiting for something. He doesn’t seem to be a danger to anyone, so Carlos feels safe enough to approach him, sit next to him. He doesn’t wrench his arms back for cuffs, unwilling to aggravate his shoulder injury, but puts a hand on TK’s back to warn him not to go anywhere while they wait for backup. 

“You know it’s a crime to escape police custody.”

“I’m already being indicted for murder. It doesn’t matter.”

It does, though, as another unit rolls up and Carlos pulls TK to his feet to properly cuff him. He must not need to be in the hospital anymore, to have pulled this stunt. Carlos is about to hand TK off to an officer so he can check in on Tamin when he sees a silver gleam and his heart drops. He grabs TK’s wrist, maybe too hard, and something drops to the ground with a clatter while TK cries out. It’s a pained sound, but Carlos carefully pics the object up with the corner of his coat. It’s a small utility knife, the kind of standard department issue Carlos has and most firefighters likely do as well. He hands it to another officer who has an evidence bag ready.

“Really, TK?”

“I don’t have anything to lose.”

He struggles a little against the cuffs, but stops when it aggravates his still healing gunshot wound. As he’s taken into the back of the cop car for the ride back to the station, he doesn’t know how to feel about this. He’s sure someone will interrogate TK, find out how he escaped, and that leaves Carlos free to go check on Tamin. When he knocks on her door, it takes calling out his identity for her to open the door and let him in. She looks haggard, like she hasn’t been sleeping well. That’s not much of a surprise. She must regret shooting TK.

“Are you okay?” he asks gently.

“I think he was planning to kill me for shooting him.”

Carlos pats her back in a way he hopes is reassuring. “He didn’t though. You’re safe.”

“I shouldn’t have shot him.”

If she’s expecting sympathy for that, Carlos doesn’t have any. He gets himself a water bottle from her fridge and takes a few sips to calm down from the adrenaline rush that always comes from disarming a perp. 

“No, you shouldn’t have. But there’s nothing you can do about it now except learn from it.”

She makes a face.

Carlos doesn’t know what to say next, so he settles for sending out a message to end the BOLO for TK, but leaves it for Mateo, since no one’s managed to get ahold of him yet. Besides that, Carlos and Tamin still have to go to court in the morning for arraignment, and he doesn’t doubt that half the town will be there in support of the captain. They loved Captain Strand, and they’re angry. It’ll be awful seeing this go to trial. 

“I know this has been hard on you, but that’s what being a cop is like, Kat. You’ll have to get used to it. There are going to be hard cases, especially in homicide. You can’t shoot at every perp who scares you.”

“I know that.”

But she didn’t know it when it mattered.

Carlos doesn’t say that, even if he thinks it. That won’t do anything for either of them right now. Instead, he tries to calm her down and prepare her for what sitting through this arraignment will be like. People will be angry. Some at the perps, some at the police. It’s best to keep quiet and put on the formal blues for the occasion. 

“Did he say anything, while he was here? Or was he just quiet?”

She gets water of her own and drinks some before putting together her response. “He told me to open the door, that was it. He probably wanted to get me back for shooting him.”

“That doesn’t seem like him.”

“You don’t know him,” Tamin reminds. “He’s a murderer you’ve spoken to a handful of times. Don’t you think you’re too invested?”

He doesn’t bother to respond to her, not wanting to analyze what she said. Admitting maybe he’s become too invested in TK’s thoughts and wellbeing and smile is something he’s not ready to deal with. It makes him complicit, kind of. Besides, Tamin is the one who shot someone in the back, so she doesn’t have a right to comment on how invested Carlos is or isn’t in a case.

“It doesn’t matter. At least we can start to put this whole thing behind us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At some point in the future, probably in the fall, I'll be returning to this to write the second part in the series, consisting of the trial and tarlos actually getting srious

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr @cupidmarwani


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